---
name: "Cyd Charisse"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/cyd-charisse"
fi1m_id: "cyd-charisse"
imdb_id: "nm0001998"
tmdb_id: 41226
wikidata_id: "Q62558"
roles: ["Actor"]
born: "8 March 1922"
died: "16 June 2008"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 3
average_fi1m_score: 88
average_as: "actor"
average_over: 3
updated: "2026-09-25T05:19:45.134207+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Cyd Charisse

## Identity

Cyd Charisse

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/person/cyd-charisse
- **Type:** Person
- **Fi1m ID:** cyd-charisse
- **IMDb ID:** nm0001998
- **TMDB ID:** 41226
- **Wikidata ID:** Q62558
- **Same entity:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyd_Charisse, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q62558, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001998/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/41226

Actor. Born 8 March 1922 in Amarillo, Texas, USA. Died 16 June 2008.

## Details

- **Work:** Actor
- **Born:** 8 March 1922, Amarillo, Texas, USA
- **Died:** 16 June 2008
- **Active:** 1952–1993
- **Also known as:** Lily Norwood, Tula Ellice Finklea, سید شریس
- **Frequently works with:** [Adolph Green](https://film.one/person/adolph-green.md), [Arthur Freed](https://film.one/person/arthur-freed.md), [Betty Comden](https://film.one/person/betty-comden.md)
- **Average Fi1m score:** 88, as actor, over 3 titles
- **Fi1m score by decade:** 1950s 88 (2), 1990s 88 (1)
- **Fi1m against the critics:** 88 to 84 across 3 titles
- **Score spread:** 3 at 80+, 0 at 60–79, 0 under 60
- **Lead roles:** 1 of 3 acting credits billed first or second
- **Genres:** Comedy 3, Romance 2, Family 1
- **Screen time:** 4 hours of reviewed films
- **Box office:** $11m across 2 films with figures
- **Elsewhere:** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyd_Charisse, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q62558, https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001998/, https://www.themoviedb.org/person/41226

## Streaming the US now

- **HBO Max:** [*Singin' in the Rain*](https://film.one/film/singin-in-the-rain.md) (93), [*The Band Wagon*](https://film.one/film/the-band-wagon.md) (84)
- **Hulu:** [*Frasier*](https://film.one/tv/frasier.md) (88)

For United States; add `?region=XX` for another country.

## Fi1m on Cyd Charisse

> Cyd Charisse makes technically exact dancing feel charged with desire. We rate her highly as a dancing actor, with a firm reservation about the dialogue, which can sound learned rather than felt.

In the green sequinned dress in *Singin' in the Rain* (1952), Cyd Charisse needs little dialogue to make an impression. Her appearance in the ‘Broadway Melody’ ballet with Gene Kelly is brief, but there is nothing tentative about it. We were delighted by the combination of precision and sensuality: she makes exact movement look pleasurable rather than dutiful. There is glamour in the costume, certainly, but the dancing is what makes us keep watching.

Stanley Donen and Kelly’s film is our clearest recommendation for her, with its slight romance outweighed by the comic timing and pleasure of the performances. The brevity of her appearance helps: she is given the work she does best, without much dialogue to carry. Her technical control makes the attraction more convincing; there is no uncertainty about the way she moves. It is a useful introduction to Charisse because it lets us see how much she can suggest within a dance, without asking her to sustain a character through a succession of spoken scenes.

That appearance brought her to prominence after dance roles in Arthur Freed’s MGM musicals, and substantial parts followed. *The Band Wagon* (1953) paired her with Fred Astaire for ‘Dancing in the Dark’ and ‘Girl Hunt Ballet’; *Brigadoon* (1954), directed by Vincente Minnelli, put her opposite Kelly again. She returned to Astaire in *Silk Stockings* (1957), a musical remake of *Ninotchka*.

The limitation is the acting between numbers: her dialogue can sound learned, and we find her less persuasive when a scene depends on speech alone. That matters in a musical, since the scenes between dances still have to hold our attention. As the studio musical declined, she continued in acting roles, television and stage work, but those later appearances are not the basis of our enthusiasm. For a longer introduction, choose *The Band Wagon* and give the scenes between its dances a little patience.

## Biography

Cyd Charisse was an American dancer and actress. Born Tula Ellice Finklea on 8 March 1922 in Amarillo, Texas, she studied ballet after recovering from polio in childhood and toured with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo as a teenager under the names Felia Siderova and Maria Istomina.

She entered films in the 1940s, initially credited as Lily Norwood, and became known for her dance sequences in MGM musicals. Charisse danced with Gene Kelly in *Singin' in the Rain* (1952) and *Brigadoon* (1954), and with Fred Astaire in *The Band Wagon* (1953) and *Silk Stockings* (1957). She later appeared in television series including *Murder, She Wrote* and made her Broadway debut in *Grand Hotel* in 1992. She received the National Medal of Arts in 2006.

Charisse was married to dancer and teacher Nico Charisse from 1939 until their divorce in 1947, and to singer Tony Martin from 1948 until her death on 17 June 2008 in Los Angeles.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, britannica.com, imdb.com.*

## On Fi1m (3)

- *Frasier* (1993), Fi1m 88, as Polly (voice) — [page](https://film.one/tv/frasier.md)
- *The Band Wagon* (1953), Fi1m 84, as Gabrielle Gerard — [page](https://film.one/film/the-band-wagon.md)
- *Singin' in the Rain* (1952), Fi1m 93, as Dancer — [page](https://film.one/film/singin-in-the-rain.md)

## Complete filmography (59)

Every credit, newest first. Titles without a page can be requested for review on the HTML page.

- *Empire State Building Murders* (2008), as Vicky Adams
- *Burke's Law* (1994), series, as Amanda Richardson
- *Frasier* (1993), series, as Polly (voice) — Fi1m 88, [page](https://film.one/tv/frasier.md)
- *Nylon Blues: A History of the Nylon Stocking* (1991), as (archive footage)
- *Dance Crazy in Hollywood* (1990), as Various Roles (archive footage)
- *Swimsuit* (1989), as Mrs. Allison
- *That's Dancing!* (1985), Actor
- *Crazy like a Fox* (1984), series, as Barbara Carlisle
- *Murder, She Wrote* (1984), series, as Myrna Montclair
- *Glitter* (1984), series, as Ethel Woodley
- *Portrait of an Escort* (1980), as Sheilah Croft
- *Warlords of Atlantis* (1978), as Atsil
- *Fantasy Island* (1978), series, as Queen Delphia
- *The Love Boat* (1977), series, as Eve Mills
- *Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood* (1976), as President's Girl 4
- *That's Entertainment, Part II* (1976), as (archive footage)
- *That's Entertainment!* (1974), as (archive footage) (uncredited)
- *Fol-de-Rol* (1972), as Various Characters
- *Medical Center* (1969), series, Actor
- *Hawaii Five-O* (1969), series, as Alicia Warren
- *Maroc 7* (1967), as Louise Henderson
- *The Silencers* (1966), as Sarita
- *Assassination in Rome* (1965), as Shelley North
- *Two Weeks in Another Town* (1962), as Carlotta
- *Black Tights* (1961), as The Widow
- *Five Golden Hours* (1961), as Baroness Sandra
- *Party Girl* (1958), as Vicki Gaye
- *Twilight for the Gods* (1958), as Charlotte King
- *Silk Stockings* (1957), as Ninotchka Yoschenko
- *Meet Me in Las Vegas* (1956), as Maria Corvier
- *MGM Parade* (1955), series, Actor
- *It's Always Fair Weather* (1955), as Jackie Leighton
- *Deep in My Heart* (1954), as Performer (segment "The Desert Song")
- *Brigadoon* (1954), as Fiona Campbell
- *Easy to Love* (1953), as Model (uncredited)
- *The Band Wagon* (1953), as Gabrielle Gerard — Fi1m 84, [page](https://film.one/film/the-band-wagon.md)
- *Sombrero* (1953), as Lola de Torrano
- *Singin' in the Rain* (1952), as Dancer — Fi1m 93, [page](https://film.one/film/singin-in-the-rain.md)
- *The Wild North* (1952), as Indian girl
- *The Mark of the Renegade* (1951), as Manuella de Vasquez
- *East Side, West Side* (1949), as Rosa Senta
- *Tension* (1949), as Mary Chanler
- *Words and Music* (1948), as Margo Grant
- *The Kissing Bandit* (1948), as Dancer
- *On an Island with You* (1948), as Yvonne Torro
- *The Unfinished Dance* (1947), as Mlle. Ariane Bouchet
- *Fiesta* (1947), as Conchita
- *Till the Clouds Roll By* (1946), as Dance Specialty
- *Three Wise Fools* (1946), as Rena Fairchild
- *The Harvey Girls* (1946), as Deborah Andrews
- *Ziegfeld Follies* (1945), as Ballerina (segment "Beauty")
- *In Our Time* (1944), as Ballerina (uncredited)
- *Thousands Cheer* (1943), as Dancer (uncredited)
- *Mission to Moscow* (1943), as Galina Ulanova - Ballerina (uncredited)
- *Something to Shout About* (1943), as Lily
- *This Love of Mine* (1942), as Dancer (uncredited)
- *The Gay Parisian* (1942), as Dancer (uncredited)
- *Escort Girl* (1941), as Flamenco Dancer (uncredited)
- *Rhumba Serenade* (1941), Actor

## Gallery

- ![Cyd Charisse on her terrace in Hollywood (1987)](https://film.one/media/person/59279/gallery-c7a2b5ad83ff.jpg) Cyd Charisse on her terrace in Hollywood (1987) — Allan warren, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/97/Cyd_Charisse_2_Allan_Warren.jpg/1280px-Cyd_Charisse_2_Allan_Warren.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Cyd Charisse in Los Angeles on her terrace. (1987)](https://film.one/media/person/59279/gallery-80a90bcd1072.jpg) Cyd Charisse in Los Angeles on her terrace. (1987) — Allan warren, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/f8/Cyd_Charisse_Allan_Warren.jpg/1280px-Cyd_Charisse_Allan_Warren.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![61st Annual Academy Awards, 1989. NOTE: Permission granted to copy, publish, broadcast or post any of my photos, but please credit "photo by Alan Light" if you ](https://film.one/media/person/59279/gallery-fd894ae50e8e.jpg) 61st Annual Academy Awards, 1989. NOTE: Permission granted to copy, publish, broadcast or post any of my photos, but please credit "photo by Alan Light" if you  — Alan Light, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/24/Cyd_Charisse_and_Tony_Martin_%282084578546%29.jpg/1280px-Cyd_Charisse_and_Tony_Martin_%282084578546%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Advertising poster for Twilight for the Gods (1958)](https://film.one/media/person/59279/gallery-fa2afc2d1c89.jpg) Advertising poster for Twilight for the Gods (1958) — Reynold Brown, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons (https://thumb.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/79/Twilight_for_the_Gods_%281958%2C_Movie_Poster%29.jpg/1280px-Twilight_for_the_Gods_%281958%2C_Movie_Poster%29.jpg?utm_source=commons.wikimedia.org&utm_campaign=imageinfo&utm_content=thumbnail)
- ![Cyd Charisse](https://film.one/media/person/59279/gallery-81d3b799019a.jpg) Cyd Charisse — Image via TMDB
- ![Cyd Charisse](https://film.one/media/person/59279/gallery-39ef528e782f.jpg) Cyd Charisse — Image via TMDB
- ![Cyd Charisse](https://film.one/media/person/59279/gallery-f7025a2ab481.jpg) Cyd Charisse — Image via TMDB

## Awards

### Other awards — 1 won

- National Medal of Arts 2006: National Medal of Arts (won)

*From Wikidata, which records wins more completely than nominations.*

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/cyd-charisse